A HUGE underwater hidden volcano is set to erupt near the US mainland as scientists reveal it has shown signs it will blow imminently.
The Axial Seamount is more than a mile wide and sits just off the US coast near Washington and Oregon.
Sitting just 300 miles away from the mainland, experts revealed the 3,600-foot-tall volcano is likely to erupt this year.
The lava bomb has shown signs of a magma buildup through extreme swelling and rumbling.
Axial Seamount has previously erupted in 1998, 2011, and 2015.
Scientists have revealed the underwater giant had swollen to the size it was before its 2015 eruption, in November 2024.
This indicates magma has built up in the volcano before a possible eruption.
The geologist behind this incredible study – William Chadwick from Oregon State University – dubbed this underwater beast the “most active volcano” in the area.
“Because it’s had these three eruptions in the last 30 years, that’s why we call it the most active volcano in the Pacific Northwest,” he told CBS affiliate KOIN.
“Because most of the ones on land aren’t active that frequently, and they spend a lot of their time slumbering, whereas Axial has a pretty active magma supply.
“So, if it’s not erupting, it’s inflating and getting ready for the next one. And so that’s why we’re kind of monitoring what’s happening to it all the time.”
He added what else happened around the volcano last year to raise his suspicions about an eruption.
[bc_video account_id=”5067014667001″ application_id=”” aspect_ratio=”16:9″ autoplay=”” caption=” Dramatic moment Iceland volcano erupts without warning AGAIN as lava spews into air & tourists evacuated from resort” embed=”in-page” experience_id=”” height=”100%” language_detection=”” max_height=”360px” max_width=”640px” min_width=”0px” mute=”” padding_top=”56%” picture_in_picture=”” player_id=”pV1KxHf2t” playlist_id=”” playsinline=”” sizing=”responsive” video_id=”6364982302112″ video_ids=”” width=”640px”]“And in the last year, especially, there was the number of earthquakes, which is also monitored by this cable observatory, has really increased,” Chadwick added.
“So, all these signs are pointing toward the final stages of the buildup to the next eruption.”
Despite this, the experts explained they were not worried about the imminent explosion.
Axial Seamount is an underwater shield volcano, so its eruptions are not explosive, like typical volcanoes on land.
This beast will release a slow stream of lava across the seafloor, rather than shooting it up.
Chadwick previously described the eruption as a “balloon” deflating, according to OregonLive.
“The balloon keeps getting bigger and bigger. And at some point, the pressure becomes too great and the magma forces open a crack, flowing to the surface,” he explained.
“When that happens, the seafloor subsides as the “balloon” deflates.”
